ACCME Seeks Input on Delivering Accredited Education Through Online and Social Media Platforms

The digital landscape of continuing medical education (CME) is rapidly evolving. The Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME®) recently unveiled a draft proposal regarding the delivery of accredited education via online platforms and social media channels. The aim? To offer clearer guidelines for accredited providers operating in the digital space.

Understanding the Changes

With a surge in the delivery of CME online, especially in the wake of the pandemic-induced pivot to virtual learning, there has been an increasing call for clarity regarding compliance, particularly with the Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited CE.

In a nutshell, the ACCME’s stance is clear: the standards that apply to in-person learning environments also apply to their virtual counterparts. This includes matters related to:

• Accountability: Regardless of the medium, accredited providers remain fully accountable for their content.
• Marketing and Advertising: The educational experience should be devoid of product-specific advertisements.
• Video Material Reposting: Standards for protecting content and providing accreditation-related information must be met.
• Intellectual Property: Providers must safeguard the rights of content creators.
• Data Privacy: Learners’ identity and data should remain confidential.
• Social Media Protection: The learning environment on social platforms should be free from interference by ineligible companies.

Proposed ACCME-Compliant Platform Designation

In addition to these guidelines, ACCME is also proposing a new designation for platforms willing to align with their expectations. This ACCME-Compliant Platform Designation would signal to accredited providers that a platform upholds the expected standards. This is a voluntary designation and platforms wishing to earn this mark will be subject to periodic testing to ensure compliance.

Your Feedback Matters

ACCME has launched a survey to gather feedback on these proposed guidelines. The objective is to ensure that the guidelines are not only clear but are also devoid of any unintended barriers or consequences.

ACCME values diverse perspectives and is eager to hear from stakeholders across the board: from accredited continuing education providers to clinicians and even members of the public.

The survey is expected to take 15-20 minutes and will remain open until Thursday, Oct. 12, 2023, at 11:59 pm Central. Note that anonymous responses will not be accepted, and participants will need to provide contact information.

For further information and to participate in the survey, stakeholders can visit the ACCME’s official website.

Comment

Several commenters have noted that what seems as the intent of these proposed changes would be to restrict accredited CME content to platforms/channels approved by the ACCME – and therefore, likely disallowing sharing accredited content to social media websites such as a public Facebook page, twitter, Instagram, Linkedin, YouTube etc.…

It is important that the ACCME receives comments from stakeholders to help ensure unintended consequences are minimized.

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